Fennessy, Edward (Oral history)

British civilian radar expert worked with Air Ministry in GB, 1938-1940; officer served with 60 Group, RAF in GB, 1940-1945

REEL 1 Background in West Ham, GB, 1912-1934: family; education. Aspects of period as engineer with Standard Telephones and Cables in Woolwich, London, GB, 1934-1938: developing filter for defensive acoustic detectors. Recollections of period as electronics engineer with Air Ministry in GB, 1938-1940: circumstances of recruitment to Air Ministry 1938; arrival at Bawdsey Manor; first briefing on radio direction finding installation of Radio Direction Finder (RDF) filter operations room at Headquarters, Fighter Command, RAF Bentley Priory autumn 1938; Robert Watson-Watt's early Radio Direction Finder (RDF) work; pre-war development of Chain Home system; his work on communication system to link Chain Home stations into Fighter Command; his development of 'one in one' system to synchronise Radio Direction Finder (RDF) stations; pressure of political events on work, 1938-1939; informality of work regime at Bawdsey Manor; leadership qualities of Dr A P Rowe; Prime Minister Winston Churchill's interest in Radio Direction Finder (RDF) and visit to RAF Martlesham Heath and Bawdsey Manor, 1940; Prime Minister Winston Churchill's opinion of primitive nature of Observer Corps work; LZ-130 Graf Zeppelin II Airship's monitoring of Chain Home stations 2/8/1938; proposals to relocate Bawdsey Manor research unit on outbreak of Second World War, 3/9/1939; his plan to move planning and construction of Chain Home stations to Carlton House, Leighton Buzzard; degree of awareness of German radar developments; monitoring LZ-130 Graf Zeppelin II Airship reconnaissance flight 2/8/1939. REEL 2 Continues: story of monitoring reconnaissance flight of LZ-130 Graf Zeppelin II Airship, 2/8/1939; British assumption of German awareness of Bawdsey Manor and Chain Home stations and consequent precautionary measures; post-war discussion with German chief signals officer, General Wolfgang Martini about LZ-130 Graf Zeppelin II Airship flight and its inaccurate intelligence; circumstances and attitude to move as procurement officer to Ministry of Aircraft Production at Harrogate, 1940. Recollections of period as officer with No 60 Group, RAF at Leighton Buzzard, GB, 1940-1945: recruitment and area of responsibility for construction of Chain Home stations; extension and upgrading of Chain Home stations; German attempt to destroy Chain Home stations, 12/8/1940 and German's failure to recognise their importance; extent of Chain Home network by 1941; intelligence aims of Bruneval Raid, 2/1942; security move of Telecommunications Research Establishment from Worth Matravers to Malvern, 1942; Bomber Command's problem in locating targets, 1940-1942; value of Dr A P Rowe's 'Sunday Soviets' discussion group; origins of Gee navigational system in Robert Dippy's work at Bawdsey Manor, 1938-1939; working of Gee navigational aid; his work on network for Gee chains, 1941-1942; role of Gee navigational aid; planning, construction and personnel recruitment to implement Gee navigational aid system. REEL 3 Continues: responsibility for use of Gee navigational aid throughout war; initial rejection of Alec Reeves' concept for Oboe navigational system for target precision; involvement in Oboe station system; role of De Havilland DH.98 Mosquito in operational use of Oboe; discussion with General Wolfgang Martini about first use of Oboe to devastate Krupp factory at Essen, Germany, 3/1943; second hand story of Hermann Göering's suppression of suspected new British radar from Adolf Hitler; range limitation of Oboe navigational aid; his plan for Oboe and Gee coverage of Cherbourg Peninsula, France and subsequent security reprimand extension of Oboe and Gee systems and formation of No 72 Wing, RAF with mobile radar; work of No 72 Wing, RAF's in pushing forward Gee and Oboe coverage into Germany, 1944; advance knowledge of German Ardennes Offensive from Oboe station and subsequent ordering retreat of unit and breaking news to 2nd Tactical Air Force, RAF; planning network of Gee chains from GB to Singapore, Malaya from 5/1945. REEL 4 Continues: how dropping of atomic bombs ended work on Gee network to Far East, 8/1945; post-war work with Decca Radar Coy; Geoffrey Roberts pre-war invention of 'fruit machine' automatic plotting device for converting radar signals to grid references for Fighter Command, RAF.